Kissed By Fire

Part 4: Stowaway

The tricky part would be physically getting on the ship. Anut didn't want to ask Zuko or Iroh outright and risk being rejecting, so she decided sneaking aboard was the safest bet; better to beg forgiveness than ask permission. But how? She was far too tiny to disguise herself as a soldier, and not powerful enough to hypnotize more than one person, let alone an entire crew.

As her window of opportunity began to close, Anut started panicking, sure this would be her only chance to avoid marrying Zhao.

"Where are the engineers?" Zuko shouted to a nearby soldier, seeing that the hull of his ship wasn't fully mended yet. 

"I'll go find them immediately, your Highness." 

Huffing with annoyance, Zuko boarded the ship, his uncle following close behind. That boy was never happy, not even after winning an Agni Kai. But his words gave Anut an idea: she wouldn't make it on that boat taking the ramp like everyone else, she'd need to take a more creative route.

After taking a quick glance around to make sure no one was watching, she dove into the water, slipping under the surface without making a sound. The Isle of the Sun may not have been the magical place Iroh imagined it to be, but it provided Anut with plenty of places to swim. She held her breath, parting the water with her cupped hands in a digging motion, getting closer and closer to the gap in the hull, just big enough for a person of her size to slip through.

Once inside, she realized her mistake. When Zuko's crew figured out this was the source of their leaking, they'd sealed the door to contain it. When the engineers finished mending it, they'd open the sealed barrier and firebend the remaining water to steam. 

But the hole was still there, so if Anut opened the door, the halls would flood, not enough to sink the ship, but it would be clear someone had snuck aboard. She tried to swim back out, but the angle outwards was surrounded by jagged metal, caging her like an eel in a basket trap. So her options were to either open the door and flood the ship or do nothing and drown, her air supply already dwindling. 

Taking the wheel-shaped door handle with both hands, she pried open the door, red hair floating around her like strands of fire in the salt water. Once the bolt clicked out of place, the pressure of the sea pushed it open, and Anut flowed out with it, falling flat on her stomach, weighed down by her sopping clothes, gasping for breath. She'd been closer to death than she'd realized.

"What was that?" The voice came from above deck, and it did not sound happy.

Prying her body off the floor, she started down the hall, wanting to put as much distance between herself and the scene of the crime as possible, but the clanging of boots on metal told her she didn't have much time. She flung herself into one of the boiler rooms just in time.

"Shit!" Zuko shouted, running towards the hole. The hissing sound of several firebenders forcefully evaporating large quantities of water filled the corridor before the door creaked shut. "How could this happen?"

"It might've just been an accident," a soldier suggested. "Perhaps the door wasn't properly bolted to begin with."

"No. This was sabotage. And I'd bet anything Zhao's behind it."

You'd lose that bet, Anut thought, huddling as deep into the pipes as she could get without burning herself on the scalding-hot metal.

"If there was someone here, they'll have left by now."

"We don't know that. Check every room one by one," Zuko commanded. "I'll clear the other corridor."

With each step of the Prince's feet, Anut felt the bile rise higher and higher into her throat until she was sure she'd vomit right there and ruin everything. His movements were so slow and deliberate, it was as though was doing it just to torment her. When the door to the boiler room squeaked open, she inhaled deeply, holding her breath precisely the way she did a few moments ago to get into the ship, lungs still sore.

"I know you're in here, whoever you are," Zuko whispered. "You were smart to get as far away from the flooding as you could, but you left a trail. Most people wouldn't notice it, but I did. If you turn yourself in, I might consider showing mercy." He paused, silent. "My patience is wearing thin; you have till the count of three. One... two... three-"

"Wait, please," Anut said, hopping out of her hiding spot and falling to her knees. 

"You! You're Zhao's girl. What the hell are you doing on my ship?"

"Keep your voice down, please, let me explain." 

Anut beckoned for him to come inside and close the door, which he did. "Go on," he barked. "Let's hear it then."

 She sighed, settling back onto her heels, pressing her forehead to the ground. Zuko valued honor and piety, and that's what she'd give to him. "Please, your Royal Highness, I beg you for sanctuary on your ship. In a few months, I'll be forced to marry a man I don't love, a man who treats me like a prisoner. When I ask for your help, know that it is not on a whim, but what I hope will be the final in a long list of attempts to regain my freedom."

He didn't respond for several seconds so Anut, unable to contain her anxiety, looked up at him imploringly. His pale skin glowed red in the dim, scarlet light, the angle with which she viewed him only adding to his fearsomeness. This man could do anything to her, she realized. Not just protect her or return her to Zhao; he could very well kill her where she kneeled.

"I already have Zhao up my ass about the Avatar, I don't need to give him another reason to target me. I'm sorry."

Tears filled Anut's eyes, and it came crashing down on her that she'd failed, and she'd be returned to the commander, who would surely punish her severely, not to mention limit all her other freedoms. The next time guests came, she wouldn't be invited; at their wedding ceremony, she'd be shackled to the altar. Zuko turned to leave, but she couldn't let her last chance slip away without a fight.

"Wait, wait, wait!" she said desperately, grabbing the Prince by the fabric of his pants. "You're looking for the Avatar, right?"

"Yes..." he said hesitantly.

"You thought he was a fearsome warrior, but he's a just a young boy, isn't he? A monk." His facial expression told Anut she was correct and she continued. "I saw him, the little boy with the arrow tattoos, in a vision. I can help you find him."

Zuko crouched low so they were eye to eye. "You'll help me find the Avatar?" Anut nodded rapidly, causing the Prince to sigh. "I am almost certainly going to regret this, but you can stay."

"Thank you, thank you-"

"Don't thank me yet," he said standing. "I have a few conditions. First, you'll do exactly what I say, when I say it. We have to keep you hidden as long as possible- not all of my crew is as loyal as I'd like them to be, and the last thing we need is someone betraying us. Second, if anyone finds you- my uncle, my crew, or Zhao himself- don't count on me to protect you, or even acknowledge I was aware you stowed away on my ship. You'll go right back to where you came from." 

Anut nodded, ducking her head humbly, but Zuko wouldn't allow it, grabbing her by the jaw and forcing her to look at him. "And if I find out you deceived me, that you don't know how to find the Avatar, I'll forgo informing the Commander of your location, and just throw you overboard myself."